Painting and working and working and painting
I have been working at this full time artist thing for a few months now, but October and November were the first two months where it became really evident to me just how much work outside of painting goes in to being a full time painter. I’ll be honest, I thought a lot more painting went into it, but as it turns out there are so many non-painting tasks that have started to accumulate. Between getting ready for fairs, ordering prints, photoshoots with clients, prepping canvases, applying to shows, matting and framing work… the list just never ends. I had some lofty goals of plein air painting everyday in the fall, but pursuing art for fun has gone to the back burner as the limited painting time I have is relegated for commissions. Don’t take it as a complaint, it has just been a learning curve but this girl loves to learn. Also, don’t take me literally because my sketchbook still is getting loving just not as much as I had planned.
I participated in my first two art fairs this fall. The Gordonston Art Fair in October, and the Tybee Tour De Art in November. I really like the fair format. You are given a space, and allowed to present your work however you choose. It is like having my own little gallery show. I’d consider both fairs to have been a success since I made some sales and didn’t lose money, but each time I have learned a lot about what’s important and what sells. My big take aways:
Tourist attractions sell. I knew it going into it but I didn’t want to admit it. I had avoided painting some of the big attractions in town because they just didn’t interest me as much, but the couple paintings I had where it was clearly Savannah proved to be most popular.
Have a low to high price range on my art. My first fair I had mostly originals with a few prints and for my second fair I had some more prints available and also created some mini art works that I could sell for under $20. While both fairs were made worthwhile by selling originals, the vast majority of my sales were the ones priced $20 and under.
Looking forward, I will be doing more fairs. I just really enjoy getting to talk with people about my art and see their reactions to my work. Considering the commission fees of most galleries, you really can’t beat a one time vendor fee to sell as much work as you can in a day. My big goal for 2023 is actually to get my artist/performer permit from the city so I can head to Forsyth Park on Saturdays so expect to see me out there in a couple months.
For now, I will keep working away at my commissions and getting in painting for fun when I can. I have a few projects that I have been working on this fall that I can’t wait to share on my social media so be sure to keep an eye out there to see what I have been up to. If you are interested in a commission or any of my originals feel free to reach out- my info is on my contact page.
